1. These 2 useful packages
automake --version  
autoconf --version
  1. autoconf uses configure.ac to create configure type ‘./configure’ (or sh ./configure) to configure the package for your system.

Running ‘configure’ takes awhile. While running, it prints some messages telling which features it is checking for.

  1. Type make to compile the package.
  2. make install

Read:

Installation Instructions  
*************************  
  
Copyright (C) 1994, 1995, 1996, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005 Free  
Software Foundation, Inc.  
  
This file is free documentation; the Free Software Foundation gives  
unlimited permission to copy, distribute and modify it.  
  
Basic Installation  
==================  
  
These are generic installation instructions.  
  
   The `configure' shell script attempts to guess correct values for  
various system-dependent variables used during compilation.  It uses  
those values to create a `Makefile' in each directory of the package.  
It may also create one or more `.h' files containing system-dependent  
definitions.  Finally, it creates a shell script `config.status' that  
you can run in the future to recreate the current configuration, and a  
file `config.log' containing compiler output (useful mainly for  
debugging `configure').  
  
   It can also use an optional file (typically called `config.cache'  
and enabled with `--cache-file=config.cache' or simply `-C') that saves  
the results of its tests to speed up reconfiguring.  (Caching is  
disabled by default to prevent problems with accidental use of stale  
cache files.)  
  
   If you need to do unusual things to compile the package, please try  
to figure out how `configure' could check whether to do them, and mail  
diffs or instructions to the address given in the `README' so they can  
be considered for the next release.  If you are using the cache, and at  
some point `config.cache' contains results you don't want to keep, you  
may remove or edit it.  
  
   The file `configure.ac' (or `configure.in') is used to create  
`configure' by a program called `autoconf'.  You only need  
`configure.ac' if you want to change it or regenerate `configure' using  
a newer version of `autoconf'.  
  
The simplest way to compile this package is:  
  
  1. `cd' to the directory containing the package's source code and type  
     `./configure' to configure the package for your system.  If you're  
     using `csh' on an old version of System V, you might need to type  
     `sh ./configure' instead to prevent `csh' from trying to execute  
     `configure' itself.  
  
     Running `configure' takes awhile.  While running, it prints some  
     messages telling which features it is checking for.  
  
  2. Type `make' to compile the package.  
  
  3. Optionally, type `make check' to run any self-tests that come with  
     the package.  
  
  4. Type `make install' to install the programs and any data files and  
     documentation.  
  
  5. You can remove the program binaries and object files from the  
     source code directory by typing `make clean'.  To also remove the  
     files that `configure' created (so you can compile the package for  
     a different kind of computer), type `make distclean'.  There is  
     also a `make maintainer-clean' target, but that is intended mainly  
     for the package's developers.  If you use it, you may have to get  
     all sorts of other programs in order to regenerate files that came  
     with the distribution.  
  
Compilers and Options  
=====================  
  
Some systems require unusual options for compilation or linking that the  
`configure' script does not know about.  Run `./configure --help' for  
details on some of the pertinent environment variables.  
  
   You can give `configure' initial values for configuration parameters  
by setting variables in the command line or in the environment.  Here  
is an example:  
  
     ./configure CC=c89 CFLAGS=-O2 LIBS=-lposix  
  
   *Note Defining Variables::, for more details.  
  
Compiling For Multiple Architectures  
====================================  
  
You can compile the package for more than one kind of computer at the  
same time, by placing the object files for each architecture in their  
own directory.  To do this, you must use a version of `make' that  
supports the `VPATH' variable, such as GNU `make'.  `cd' to the  
directory where you want the object files and executables to go and run  
the `configure' script.  `configure' automatically checks for the  
source code in the directory that `configure' is in and in `..'.  
  
   If you have to use a `make' that does not support the `VPATH'  
variable, you have to compile the package for one architecture at a  
time in the source code directory.  After you have installed the  
package for one architecture, use `make distclean' before reconfiguring  
for another architecture.  
  
Installation Names  
==================  
  
By default, `make install' installs the package's commands under  
`/usr/local/bin', include files under `/usr/local/include', etc.  You  
can specify an installation prefix other than `/usr/local' by giving  
`configure' the option `--prefix=PREFIX'.  
  
   You can specify separate installation prefixes for  
architecture-specific files and architecture-independent files.  If you  
pass the option `--exec-prefix=PREFIX' to `configure', the package uses  
PREFIX as the prefix for installing programs and libraries.  
Documentation and other data files still use the regular prefix.  
  
   In addition, if you use an unusual directory layout you can give  
options like `--bindir=DIR' to specify different values for particular  
kinds of files.  Run `configure --help' for a list of the directories  
you can set and what kinds of files go in them.  
  
   If the package supports it, you can cause programs to be installed  
with an extra prefix or suffix on their names by giving `configure' the  
option `--program-prefix=PREFIX' or `--program-suffix=SUFFIX'.  
  
Optional Features  
=================  
  
Some packages pay attention to `--enable-FEATURE' options to  
`configure', where FEATURE indicates an optional part of the package.  
They may also pay attention to `--with-PACKAGE' options, where PACKAGE  
is something like `gnu-as' or `x' (for the X Window System).  The  
`README' should mention any `--enable-' and `--with-' options that the  
package recognizes.  
  
   For packages that use the X Window System, `configure' can usually  
find the X include and library files automatically, but if it doesn't,  
you can use the `configure' options `--x-includes=DIR' and  
`--x-libraries=DIR' to specify their locations.  
  
Specifying the System Type  
==========================  
  
There may be some features `configure' cannot figure out automatically,  
but needs to determine by the type of machine the package will run on.  
Usually, assuming the package is built to be run on the _same_  
architectures, `configure' can figure that out, but if it prints a  
message saying it cannot guess the machine type, give it the  
`--build=TYPE' option.  TYPE can either be a short name for the system  
type, such as `sun4', or a canonical name which has the form:  
  
     CPU-COMPANY-SYSTEM  
  
where SYSTEM can have one of these forms:  
  
     OS KERNEL-OS  
  
   See the file `config.sub' for the possible values of each field.  If  
`config.sub' isn't included in this package, then this package doesn't  
need to know the machine type.  
  
   If you are _building_ compiler tools for cross-compiling, you should  
use the option `--target=TYPE' to select the type of system they will  
produce code for.  
  
   If you want to _use_ a cross compiler, that generates code for a  
platform different from the build platform, you should specify the  
"host" platform (i.e., that on which the generated programs will  
eventually be run) with `--host=TYPE'.  
  
Sharing Defaults  
================  
  
If you want to set default values for `configure' scripts to share, you  
can create a site shell script called `config.site' that gives default  
values for variables like `CC', `cache_file', and `prefix'.  
`configure' looks for `PREFIX/share/config.site' if it exists, then  
`PREFIX/etc/config.site' if it exists.  Or, you can set the  
`CONFIG_SITE' environment variable to the location of the site script.  
A warning: not all `configure' scripts look for a site script.  
  
Defining Variables  
==================  
  
Variables not defined in a site shell script can be set in the  
environment passed to `configure'.  However, some packages may run  
configure again during the build, and the customized values of these  
variables may be lost.  In order to avoid this problem, you should set  
them in the `configure' command line, using `VAR=value'.  For example:  
  
     ./configure CC=/usr/local2/bin/gcc  
  
causes the specified `gcc' to be used as the C compiler (unless it is  
overridden in the site shell script).  Here is a another example:  
  
     /bin/bash ./configure CONFIG_SHELL=/bin/bash  
  
Here the `CONFIG_SHELL=/bin/bash' operand causes subsequent  
configuration-related scripts to be executed by `/bin/bash'.  
  
`configure' Invocation  
======================  
  
`configure' recognizes the following options to control how it operates.  
  
`--help'  
`-h'  
     Print a summary of the options to `configure', and exit.  
  
`--version'  
`-V'  
     Print the version of Autoconf used to generate the `configure'  
     script, and exit.  
  
`--cache-file=FILE'  
     Enable the cache: use and save the results of the tests in FILE,  
     traditionally `config.cache'.  FILE defaults to `/dev/null' to  
     disable caching.  
  
`--config-cache'  
`-C'  
     Alias for `--cache-file=config.cache'.  
  
`--quiet'  
`--silent'  
`-q'  
     Do not print messages saying which checks are being made.  To  
     suppress all normal output, redirect it to `/dev/null' (any error  
     messages will still be shown).  
  
`--srcdir=DIR'  
     Look for the package's source code in directory DIR.  Usually  
     `configure' can determine that directory automatically.  
  
`configure' also accepts some other, not widely useful, options.  Run  
`configure --help' for more details.